The district at a glance
- Chief Judge John S. Hodge, with Edward Takara as Clerk of Court; divisions include Shreveport, which has its own conduit rule
- Consumer filings: 5,781 total — 1,111 Chapter 7 and 4,669 Chapter 13, an 80.8% Chapter 13 share
- Filing fees: $338 for Chapter 7, $313 for Chapter 13
- Chapter 13 plan is the court's Local Form Plan, adopted under Rule 3015.1 instead of the Official Form and used without alteration
- Local bankruptcy rules revised as of April 1, 2026, published with appendices
- Mortgage conduit rules live in Appendix D, which the court may modify without formally amending the local rules
- Objections by non-trustee parties due at least 14 days before the confirmation hearing; the trustee may object at any time before it
- Each bankruptcy judge may adopt additional rules or procedures by standing order
Official court website: lawb.uscourts.gov
Flat per-case pricing, W.D. La. or anywhere
$400 Chapter 13 without plan · $500 with the Local Form Plan drafted · $300 personal Chapter 7 · $400 business Chapter 7. In a district that is 81% Chapter 13, the plan rate is the operative number. No retainer, no minimum, no long-term contract — and if the trustee kicks something back because we got it wrong, we fix it at no charge.
District details verified August 2026 against the court's Local Bankruptcy Rules revised as of April 1, 2026 with appendices (LBR 1001-1, 3015-1 and 3015-2, and Appendix D) and the court's published chief judge and clerk; filing counts are from Administrative Office consumer filing data. Note that the rules expressly allow any appendix to be modified without a formal amendment, and allow each judge to adopt procedures by standing order, so confirm both before relying on the conduit thresholds above. Chapter 13 trustee assignments are confirmed per case rather than listed here. Median-income figures are the U.S. Trustee table for cases filed on or after July 15, 2026 and are revised periodically. Always confirm against current sources at lawb.uscourts.gov and justice.gov/ust. Services are provided exclusively to licensed attorneys and law firms. We are not a bankruptcy petition preparer and do not provide legal advice or services to the public.